Maulvi Nazir Wazir
Maulvi Nazir Wazir Reuters

A U.S. drone strike in northern Pakistan has killed a prominent Taliban commander, his deputy and eight other people on Wednesday, according to reports.

Maulvi Nazir Wazir, or Mullah Nazir, died when unmanned missiles hit a house in Angoor Adda, near the capital of Wana, South Waziristan, close to the Afghanistan border.

Dawn, an English-language daily in Pakistan, noted that Nazir deviated from the Taliban line frequently; for example, he preferred to attack U.S. forces in Afghanistan, rather than target Pakistani soldiers within Pakistan itself. His conflicts with other Taliban chiefs reportedly led to a bombing that wounded the mullah in November.